“I’ve been working on it for three years now and have been bypassed with the money going to this program, money going to that program,” he said.

O’Mara and Councilman Steve Stenger, D-Affton, say there should be enough money for the facility after voters passed Proposition P, a sales tax increase for parks and trails.

“It’s a project that provides the county with much-needed infrastructure and it’s infrastructure that actually returns money back to the county, actually generates revenue,” Stenger said. “So why a project like that is not given priority, I don’t personally understand.”

County Prosecutor Bob McCulloch, meanwhile, is requesting about $500,000 for more prosecutors.

“His staff and department, they recoup money for St. Louis County so it’s paying for itself,” O’Mara said in support of McCulloch’s plan.

The council has until the end of the year to finalize the $623 million budget.